General Motors is taking its efforts to increase fuel economy across the board seriously with its "near luxury" Buick brand. Last year, GM made the 2.4-liter four-cylinder eAssist engine standard on the Buick Lacrosse and made the more powerful (and thirstier) 3.6-liter V6 engine a no-cost option.

That same approach is now being applied to the slightly smaller Buick Regal. The traditional 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine is being replaced with the 2.4-liter four-cylinder eAssist. GM hasn't announced pricing yet for the 2013 Regals, so we're not sure how much will be added to the vehicle's base price to account for the more expensive hybrid components.

Buick Regal eAssist

With that being said, GM's mild hybrid offering is hardly competitive in today's market and it only matches the fuel economy of traditional midsize sedans with regular gasoline engines. For comparison:

eAssist isn't intended to compete with full hybrids. It's a cost effective way to build higher mpg vehicles while limiting the downsides of a full on hybrid... limited trunk space, different driving experience, high cost.

I'm curious how the eAssist Malibu compares to the cars you list above when it comes out since that car is the closest vehicle to the non-hybrid eco versions of the Fusion, Camry, etc..

The regal is intended to be sport/luxury, it's competitors are cars like the Acura TSX.

Brandon, do we know if this eAssist Buick will be sold in China? My understanding is that China accounts for Buick's largest market.

If the manufacturing lines that do the eAssist equipment are flexible enough for more intensive hybrid equipment, it might be well-played by GM to pay off their manufacturing equipment cost by placing this in the China-sold Buick.

Price of gas in China is about 5% more than it is here. It costs a fortune to get a permit for a car over there, and you have never seen pollution like they have there. When I was in Beijing last fall, it was just amazing - the smog made made everything gray. So anything that improves it like this would be very helpful.

I wish China (and the US) would pass a 50 cent gas tax for infrastructure, and it would take pressure off people driving so much.

The Malibu Eco mpg numbers (26/38) are better than every one of the non-full-hybrid cars you listed. Yes the full hybrids beat it, as they should.

Camparing prices of the Malibu Eco to the Full on hybrids... it's pretty difficult to compare the prices without getting into the option list. My understanding is the Malibu eco will come pretty well equipped for $25000.

Also, someone may pick the Malibu Eco because they prefer it's more traditional driving dynamics to the CVT transmission setup used by most hybrids. While I like eco... I still want my car to be somewhat fun to drive.